


Recruitment

by RottenMint



Series: Paternal Instincts [13]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Blood, Concussions, Gen, Guns, Insecurity, Kidnapping, Knives, Major Character Injury, Threats of Rape/Non-Con, well just Acxa's blaster thing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-05
Updated: 2017-09-05
Packaged: 2018-12-24 01:50:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,934
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12002418
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RottenMint/pseuds/RottenMint
Summary: Keith wakes up injured and alone on a Galran ship, with little hope of escaping. Then he's given an offer that could potentially save his life- but can he trust the word of the man who kidnapped him?





	Recruitment

**Author's Note:**

> It's finally here!! I'm sorry this took so long, I've had quite a bit on my plate recently- quitting my first job, dealing with health issues, getting my second job, and moving my older sister out- and I couldn't pick how I wanted to write the opening. Luckily I figured it out, and here we are! 
> 
> As always, sorry for any mistakes, and constructive criticism is always appreciated.
> 
> Edit: to clear up any confusion from the last work, yes, Keith's appearance has returned to normal. Sorry for any confusion!!

The first thing that creeps into Keith’s awareness is that it's warm- much warmer than the castle of lions. The second is that all his armour is gone, leaving only his thermosuit. The third is that he doesn't remember making it back to the castle of lions.

He jolts up, gasping, vision clouded by stars. They clear soon enough, only for him come face-to-face with the barrel of a blaster. Keith freezes, eyes moving up to take in the form of the Galra before him. She's tall and slim, with narrow eyes and sharply pointed ears. Her expression doesn't waver under the force of Keith’s glare. It’s unsettling.

Keith remembers, then- he'd been on a planet, responding to a distress signal, when something hit him on the head. Hard. The back of his head aches, feels sticky, the stench of blood cloying in the air. That explains the stars.

“Get up,” she commands, “Lotor doesn't like to be kept waiting.” Keith tries to push himself to his feet, only to find his hands are in a pair of magnetic cuffs and pinned, immovable, at the small of his back. His feet are also connected with some kind of cord, long enough that he can walk, but short enough that he can't run.

He struggles to stand, dizziness forcing him to stop his movements. The Galra makes no move to help. Her eye twitches the longer he takes, and Keith counts it as a small victory. Once he’s standing she moves behind him, blaster pressed between his shoulder blades. She jabs him, hard.

“Move.” Keith takes a step forwards, and uses the opportunity to try and figure out where he is. He's in a cell, a dark, tiny room with bars in place of a fourth wall. At the door is another girl, though Keith can't tell if she’s Galra, as multicoloured as she is. She smiles at Keith, a little too sweet and a little too bright, waving. Keith’s skin crawls.

He needs to get out of here.

They escort him down the hallway, the Galra with the blaster at his back and the multicoloured girl in front of him. The multicoloured one is almost skipping as she leads the way down the corridor. The corridor itself is reminiscent of the ones on a Galra cruiser, but far, far smaller in comparison- that makes his chances of escaping simultaneously higher and lower. If the ship is smaller, the number of crew members and guards won't be as large, but there are less places to hide if he needs one. Regardless, escaping alone, and with a probable concussion, makes the size of the ship a moot point.

They stop in front of a door, the multicoloured girl placing her hand on the security pad. It glows green, the door sliding open, and Keith blinks. She must be Galra, then, if the tech works for her.

A hand falls on his shoulder, pushing him into the room, and Keith snarls, glaring back at the Galra woman. Her eyes widen in surprise- the first emotion Keith’s seen on her face- but quickly fall back to a narrowed neutrality. Keith’s mind races. If she’s so surprised, she must not have any idea that he’s part Galra. That gives him one advantage.

Keith guesses the room they're in now is the bridge. Two other people stand on either side of the from window, tapping away on consoles. One of them glances over, and she smiles, flashing wickedly. Her large ears perk up as well, and Keith feels himself bristle at her.

“Well, I'm glad you decided to wake up and join us.” Keith’s head swivels to the chair in the centre of the bridge. He can't see who's sitting on it, not yet, beyond a large, thin hand on the armrest.

“I'm afraid Zethrid hit you a bit harder than intended. Apparently you were being quite resistant.” The voice continues. The female Galra drags Keith around to the front of the chair, and pushes him to his knees.

On the chair sits the most elegant Galra Keith’s ever seen. Long white hair, not a strand out of place, poised in a way that commands respect and promises pain. He’s smiling too, though his seems more genuine than that of the women's. Keith doesn't find it comforting. The Galra leans forward, chin resting in the palm of his hand as he peers at Keith, one eyebrow cocked.

“I am Prince Lotor. I already know who you are, of course, yet good manners dictate that you should introduce yourself anyways.” Keith keeps his mouth shut, levelling Lotor’s gaze with a stony glower. Lotor tsks, and it sounds more like a hiss than anything. Lotor rises from his chair and uses the height advantage to look down on Keith, his smile turning to a sharp smirk.

“I don't want to hurt you, Keith. We have more in common than you could begin to imagine. Our similarities, however, will not stop me from turning you over to Haggar and the Druids, if you do not cooperate.” Keith tenses, and Lotor chuckles.

“I'm nothing like you.”

“Last chance, Paladin.” Lotor warns, tilting his head. “Are you going to throw away the fate of the universe over an introduction?” Keith’s face burns at the taunt. Lotor’s left him with no other choice.

“I'm Keith. Red Paladin of Voltron.” He squeezes the words out from behind grit teeth. Lotor reaches down and pets Keith’s hair, sending Keith's thoughts to Kolivan. It's soothing, and Keith finds his body becoming lax. A wobbly purr bubbles in his chest, and Keith squashes it down, turning it into a harsh growl and moving his head away. He feels violated, furious, that Lotor would attempt to use something that is so intimate between Galra to gentle him into submission. His throat burns with bile.

Lotor doesn't seem bothered by Keith’s reaction, flexing his fingers and returning his hand to his side.

“I must say, I'm amazed that a Galra managed to get to your planet and have a kit during a war. Makes one curious, doesn't it, Acxa?” Lotor says, directing the question to the female Galra with the blaster. She straightens her shoulders when she’s addressed.

“A deserter, maybe. The only other ones we’ve seen like him were captured on a non-hospitable moon, not the home planet of their species.”

“Which means we have yet to discover the planet you were born on, where the other half of your blood comes from.” Lotor finishes, pacing in a neat circle around Keith. “Desertion is a crime punishable by death, in the empire. And with no parent to punish, that leaves _you_.” He comes to a stop behind Keith. The bridge falls into a tense silence, broken when Keith hisses as the blade of a sword presses to the side of his neck. Lotor laughs quietly, close enough that Keith can feel Lotor’s breath ghosting the shell of his ear.

“I could pardon you, however.” Lotor continues, pulling the blade away. It leaves a thin line along the side of Keith’s neck, small beads of blood rising and dripping down Keith’s skin. Lotor snorts, stepping into Keith’s line of sight and inspecting his sword. “You don't even bleed the same colour we do, how interesting. My father would enjoy seeing you fight, watching this red spill in the arena.” He inhales, nose hovering over Keith’s blood. “Or perhaps he would use you for a different kind of entertainment, the kind only an omega like you could supply.” Keith’s blood runs cold. He struggles against his cuffs, and a smaller blade pokes the already bleeding side of his neck.

“Hold still, he’s not done yet.” The multicoloured Galra sing-songs.

“Enough, Ezor.” His attention flicks between her and Keith for a moment, until the knife withdraws. “Now, Keith,” Lotor continues, “I would not want a fellow omega to suffer such a fate. And I would not want another half-breed to suffer at the hands of our pure-blood brethren. If you join me, us, I can protect you.”

“Fellow omega? Half-breed?” Keith asks, brows lowering. “What are you talking about?” Lotor looks saddened by Keith’s questions.

“I'm an omega, like you,” Lotor says, kneeling on the floor across from Keith, "though I'm not surprised you couldn't tell. You haven't presented yet." Lotor inhales, long and deep. 'It's still clear what you will be, though. Too sweet to be anything else."

"Is being an omega supposed to make me trust you? Because if that's what you were hoping, you'll have to think of something else." Lotor's lips pull into a near pout.

“I am a half-breed, as well. Acxa, Zethrid, Ezor, and Narti. We are all half-breeds. You’re one of us.” Lotor reaches out, cupping Keith’s cheek in his hand. “I came for you before Haggar or the Druids because I've seen you fight, I know that you have a greater worth as a soldier, as one of my generals, than as an experiment.”

“I'm not one of you,” Keith spits, “I'm _nothing_ like you.”

“Yes, you are. You're Galra, and you have a place in my empire, Keith. Don't you feel out of place? Have your friends never been wary of you, hated you? We know how you feel Keith,” Lotor strokes the side of Keith’s face with his thumb, tone sympathetic, “we’re the only ones who know how you feel.”

“No,” Keith’s voice takes on a desperate edge, insecurity leaking through, “they're my family. My blood changes nothing. Any problems we had- it's changed. I'm still me.” His stomach rolls, and Keith knows it’s unrelated to his probable concussion. All he can remember is the caution of his team, Allura’s glares, the surprise- but no, _no_ , none of them have an issue with him being Galra. He repeats this to himself, resolve building. He can’t- won’t- let Lotor’s little mind games fool him.

Keith jerks his head to the side, attempting to dislodge Lotor’s grip. Lotor tightens his hand, claws digging into the skin of Keith’s cheek. His upper lip curls and his eyes narrow.

“This is your only chance. Those who do not join us will be eliminated.” Lotor hisses. “I will give you the offer one more time, Paladin.” Keith can feel tears prick in his eyes as Lotor’s claws dig in deeper, rivulets of blood running down the side of his face and along Lotor’s fingers.

“Join us,” Lotor commands, bringing their faces close together, so close they’re breathing the same air. “Become one of my generals.”

Keith shuts his eyes. He could join them to save his own life, find an escape route later once he’s gained their trust, work as a double agent like Thace. Lance is more than capable to pilot the red lion, Allura the blue. Voltron can work without him. But there's no guarantee that Lotor is keeping his word, than anything he’s said is the truth. It could all be a trap for the other Paladins, a ploy to try and capture Voltron. It's a chance he can't take.

He meets Lotor’s eyes. “No.”

Lotor releases his face with a disgusted noise, throwing Keith to the ground. He growls and steps away, drawing his sword. Keith rolls onto his side with a groan, staring at the tip of the sword level with his throat. His gaze traces up the length of the sword, of Lotor’s arm, to his face. It's twisted in fury, and Keith can't stop himself from smirking. Lotor’s eyes narrow to slits, his growl gaining a feral edge.

“Than you shall die.”

**Author's Note:**

> Wow, I'm really starting to love cliffhangers, huh? 
> 
> So... I have no idea how long it will be before you all get to find out what happens to everyone's favourite kit. I start school again tomorrow, as well as have training for my new job this week. I'll do my best to make sure updates are spaced too far apart, but I make no guarantees. 
> 
> Kudos and comments are appreciated so much, they really help to encourage me to work hard on new installments for you guys, so thank you so much to everyone who's left a comment/kudos on any of my work! 
> 
> Come chat with me about what you think will happen to Keith on Tumblr @ clever-canadian-goose


End file.
